Digital Minister Gobind Singh Deo ended his three-day working trip to Barcelona yesterday.
While in the Spanish city, he attended, among other events, the Smart City Expo World Congress 2024, engaged with representatives from the European Union (EU) to share initiatives concerning Malaysia’s journey to develop digital cities, and even visited the Barcelona Supercomputing Centre.
Here are some key highlights of his working trip:
Malaysia to host Smart City Expo next year.
Malaysia is set to make history as the first Southeast Asian nation to host the Smart City Expo next year.
The event, from Sept 17-19, 2025, in Kuala Lumpur, showcases the country’s commitment to innovation and sustainable digital city development. The event will be held in conjunction with Malaysia’s Asean chairmanship next year.
Gobind described hosting the event as a “significant step for Malaysia” as the country continues to develop its capabilities in digital cities.
Digital City v Smart City
According to the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation, digital cities use technology to improve operations, while smart cities use technology and data to create innovative solutions that improve the quality of life for citizens. Digital cities are critical precursors to evolving into smart cities.
EU digital city businesses invited to collaborate with Digital Ministry’s agencies
Gobind met representatives from the European Union (EU) on Nov 6. He highlighted that the C-level breakfast roundtable strengthened the partnership between Malaysia and the EU on digital city development.
He added that Malaysia, standing at the forefront of digital transformation in Southeast Asia and as a key investment destination in the region, is a fertile ground for investment and growth.
“Therefore, I welcome EU digital city businesses to collaborate with agencies under the Digital Ministry,” he added.
Malaysia eager to collaborate with Barcelona Supercomputing Centre (BSC)
Gobind expressed Malaysia’s interest in collaborating with BSC during his visit to the centre on Nov 6.
BSC is well known for its supercomputer research group for academia and industry.
Gobind told national news agency Bernama during the visit that he was aware of the capabilities of high-performance computers in the exploration of new chips that can be used in the development of artificial intelligence and generative AI technologies.
“I hope that moving forward, we can seal an agreement or understanding for this cooperation, which will lead to many benefits for our country, as well as from the point of view of cooperation between teaching institutions and so on,” he said.
‘Malaysians in Barcelona can help nation’s digital transformation’
Gobind also managed to spend some time with the Malaysian diaspora at a hi-tea ceremony at Restaurant Malaysian Street Lights, Barcelona, on Nov 5.
He shared the journey of his ‘startup ministry’, established with the aim of spurring the nation’s digital economy, and accelerating Malaysia’s digital transformation. He said the milestones achieved by the new ministry were guided by three key pillars – infrastructure, digital resilience, and talent.
“However, much more remains to be done, and I urge the Malaysian community here to play their part in fostering a digital Malaysia for all,” he said.
